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Mark Robbins: County judge twists law to favor mobile home park owner

By Mark Robbins

Posted:
02/27/2016 07:50:50 PM MST

Sandra Fraire walks with son Gale Padilla, 1, in Orchard Grove Mobile Home Park in Boulder last fall, about a month before Riverstone Communities, a Michigan-based operator of mobile home parks throughout the country, began charging residents extra for water in violation of their leases, according to the author, a resident of the park. (Mark Leffingwell / Staff Photographer)

It's commonly understood that our justice system needs reform. Questionable police shootings with no indictments, mandatory minimums, racial disparities, the bond system that forces the poor into plea bargains, guilty or not. But you may think: that doesn't affect me — I'm not a criminal, and I live in Boulder, Colorado. Well, think again.

Our rights under the Constitution and under the law — federal, state, local — are utterly dependent upon judges upholding those rights and following the law. So what happens when a judge utterly ignores state law, and defers to the party which appears to have deeper pockets and more power? This is not a hypothetical question. This terrible scenario played out recently in Boulder County Court, with negative repercussions for literally thousands of Boulder County residents who count on the judicial system to enforce the rights and procedures which are spelled out in state law.

In February of 2015, Riverstone Communities, a Michigan-based operator of mobile home parks throughout the country, purchased Orchard Grove Mobile Home Park in Boulder. In October they started charging homeowners extra for water — this despite the fact that the vast majority of residents had (and have) prevailing leases which specify that the park pays for water at no extra charge to the homeowner.

In response, a group of residents who would later form the Orchard Grove Homeowners Association, raised donations from fellow residents to hire a lawyer experienced in mobile home law. The attorney confirmed that the water billing was illegal, and he attempted to negotiate with Riverstone on the homeowners' behalf. But Riverstone was adamant and refused to negotiate. The lawyer advised paying the bills but under protest, which many if not most in the park have done.

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But one courageous resident — Lisa Ferreira — said this isn't right, it's not legal, it violates the lease, and it impacts families who can't afford to pay $100/month or more for water based on a theoretical formula, not on actual usage. So Lisa continued to pay her rent each month ($635) — but refused to pay her water charge ($30-35/month), noting to management that the water billing violated her lease.

This went on for several months, until Riverstone brought an eviction action against Ms. Ferreira for not paying the water charge. Lisa would become the test case for the whole water billing scheme in Orchard Grove that contravened the existing leases.

The case came to trial in Boulder County Court on Feb. 12 (case #16C030215). Lisa's defense, which she presented after meeting twice with the expert attorney, rested on two solid pillars: one, her aforementioned lease which disallows separate billing for water, and two, section 38-12-207 (2) of the Colorado Mobile Home Park Act, which specifically prohibits the use of eviction for collection of utility charges not provided for in the lease. Other legal means of collection must be used. The Colorado Mobile Home Park Act is the prevailing law which governs the relationship between park owners and mobile home owners.

Unfortunately, the judge was John Stavely — the same John Stavely who came under fire in 2005 for ignoring the First Amendment and forcing the Camera to remove a public record mug shot from its website. Stavely heard the arguments from both sides, then simply defaulted to Riverstone — and ordered an eviction, with no coherent legal explanation for his ruling. He could have ordered Lisa to pay the back water bills (maybe $150) and not be evicted — but he chose to evict her from her home of 28 years.

Riverstone offered Lisa a deal: she can stay in the park if she 1) pays the back water bills plus penalties; 2) signs a new lease of Riverstone's choosing; and 3) pays Riverstone's legal fees of up to $4,000. Lisa declined this "generous" offer and is now appealing, which will cost into the thousands possibly.

This miscarriage of justice affects not only thousands of mobile home owners in Boulder County, but potentially everyone. We have rights that are enshrined in the Constitution and in the laws passed at the federal, state, and local levels. But what good are those rights if judges simply ignore the law, and rule based on their own whim? We are supposed to be a nation under the rule of law, not the autocratic rule of men or women.

Mark Robbins is a longtime resident of Orchard Grove Mobile Home Park in Boulder.

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